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The second Jinsol opens the door, she knows that something is afoot.
Something about her supposedly empty apartment is… off. The window is a little further open than usual (this could have been a drunk Haewon from the other night, but still) and the curtain has been shifted.
Under the windowsill several production flyers lie scattered, like they’ve fallen off the ledge. Or been pushed.
Jinsol closes the door behind her slowly. “Hello?”
Silence. Shaking her head, she crouches to pick up the flyers, putting them on the coffee table and straightening up.
She stiffens. There’s a faint rustling sound coming from the kitchen. Her fingers close around a heavy candlestick, and she begins to advance slowly toward the source of the noise. The rustling is intermittent; it almost sounds like the burglar is going through her cereal box or something.
Jinsol reaches the doorway, poised to… do something. Probably not attack. She’s not sure she strikes that intimidating a figure, all told.
Then she hears a faint, almost apologetic, meow.
She blinks. A cat is wandering towards her across her kitchen floor. While she’s motionless with surprise, it nudges its head against her leg gently. While this is arguably a pleasant thing to come home to, she doesn’t own a cat.
“Who are you?” Jinsol mumbles, crouching to stroke its head.
Pleased, the cat arches against her hand and purrs. This doesn’t exactly answer her question, but the collar tag she spots might hold a few more clues. She picks the cat up. It doesn’t seem to mind, placidly settling on her lap when she takes it into the living room and sits down.
“Three Three Four apartment A?” Jinsol squints at the engraving on the tag, scratching behind the cat’s ears. “This is where you came from?”
The cat sighs contentedly and curls up, resting its head on her knee.
“I don’t think we can stay here,” Jinsol says apologetically. “Your owner is probably missing you.”
-
334A turns out to be the apartment across the courtyard from Jinsol. Once she’s found this out, the next thing to do is find some way of transporting the cat.
She contemplates the problem for a while before deciding on a cardboard box with a blanket in it. Luckily, the cat seems to have no problem with this arrangement, and they both make it down the hallway and up and down two flights of stairs without incident.
As she approaches the door, she idly wonders what she’s going to do if no one answers. Sliding a note through the letterbox saying I have your cat – apartment 428A might come across as a bit weird, like she’s holding it hostage.
But someone does answer. A girl, looking equal parts hesitant and worried. She looks at Jinsol, blinks, and then glances down at the box she’s holding.
“I’m sorry to disturb you,” Jinsol tries a disarming grin, hitching the box up a little. “But -- have you lost a cat?”
Relief floods her neighbor’s expression. “Thank god. I -- I must’ve left the window open and –“
Jinsol drapes the blanket over her shoulder and holds the box while the girl lifts the cat out. Once set on the floor, it stretches lazily, seemingly unfazed by the whole experience.
“Where’d you find him?”
“My apartment,” Jinsol says, smiling. “I thought I’d had a break in at first. He came and sat on my lap after a while, but then I figured I should probably return him.”
The girl goes right back to looking worried. “Did he break anything?”
“Um –“ Jinsol tilts her head, “No, he didn’t. You’re safe.”
They catch each other’s eye; the girl flushes, and after a beat Jinsol realises she’s still grinning at her.
“Well –“ the girl breaks off, looking at the floor. She’s mumbling now. “He sometimes goes for the cereal.”
“Why?”
“It looks like boxes of cat food, I think.” The girl shakes her head like she’s living with a tiny criminal mastermind and has long since accepted this.
Jinsol thinks she’s a little bit in love.
She hovers in the doorway for a moment, looking at the cat, now curled up on the sofa. “What’s his name?”
“Uh – I haven’t really.. thought of a name.” The girl sounds a little embarrassed. Jinsol finds it cute. “What’s yours?”
“What?”
“What’s your name?”
“Oh,” the blush is practically glowing now. Jinsol looks on, fascinated. “Yoona.”
“Yoona,” she echoes thoughtfully. “Well. I’ll remember to shut that window in the future.”
“Me too. Definitely.”
“Right.” Jinsol rocks back and forth on her heels, peering over Yoona’s shoulder to address the cat. “Bye, it was a pleasure.” She pauses, dropping the theatrics, feeling suddenly hesitant. “Well. See you.”
“Yeah,” Yoona says quietly.
Jinsol’s already walking away when the question barrels towards her in a rush. “What’s your name?”
She turns, smiles. “Jinsol.”
When she returns to her apartment and wanders into the kitchen to put the kettle on, cornflakes litter the floor, crunching underfoot. The box lies ransacked on its side. Jinsol crouches to pick it up, shaking her head. Instead of returning it to its proper place, she places it in the cupboard above the sink, in case of any future break-ins.
-
It’s a week and a half later before it’s warm enough to open the window again. Jinsol’s just got back from rehearsal and the air outside had been balmy and cool, so she opens the window before settling into the armchair with a book.
As if on cue, there’s a soft thud the minute she turns her back.
Jinsol frowns, peering over the back of the chair. The cat jumps down onto the floor and pads off into the kitchen.
“This isn’t your apartment,” Jinsol says weakly.
There’s no response. Sighing, she gets up off the armchair and wanders through to the kitchen to locate both the cat and the cardboard box, wondering how hard it’ll be to catch him this time.
-
The cat certainly puts up more of a fight.
For some reason, he’s decided that the alcove where Jinsol keeps cereal is his den, and he despises being moved from it. Eventually Jinsol decides she needs backup and grabs her phone off the counter, sending a quick text to the first person she thinks of.
Cat in kitchen. Cancel your plans and come help me catch it.
After a few minutes she gets a reply.
???
Jinsol sighs. Just… come over.
While she waits, Jinsol digs out the blanket from behind the sofa and uses it to pad out the cardboard box a little bit, hoping this will improve her chances of getting the cat in there. She’s about to consider adding a few cereal boxes when the doorbell rings.
When she goes to answer it, she’s relieved, albeit confused, to see that Haewon’s brought a cat basket.
“Why do you even own this?”
“I don’t.” Haewon says, and as if in response to Jinsol’s look of confusion someone else appears from behind her. “Jinsol, this is Lily.”
“Nice to meet you,” Jinsol says to this new arrival, who smiles at her cheerfully and sidesteps past her into the apartment. “Hang on – Lily Morrow?”
She mouths this last at Haewon, who responds with a don’t even think about it glare.
Jinsol grins impishly and ushers Haewon and the cat basket inside. She glances at Lily. “I’ve – uh – heard a lot about you.”
“Oh?” Lily looks at Haewon in surprise.
“So,” Haewon says loudly. “Cat?”
“Yeah, it’s in the kitchen. I’ve tried everything.” Jinsol explains, following them through the apartment and watching Lily kneel down to inspect her cereal alcove. “Do you have cats?”
“Just the one,” Lily mutters. She reaches behind a cereal box; there’s a disgruntled meow and she withdraws her hand hurriedly.
“Well – you’re the resident cat expert.” Jinsol says doubtfully. “Literature and music expert too, so I’m told.”
Lily raises an eyebrow. “Um –“
“What are you gonna do this this cat, anyway?” Haewon’s foot collides with the back of Jinsol’s ankle, making her wince. “Put it outside?”
“I know the owner,” now it’s Jinsol’s turn to look embarrassed. “I can drop it off at her place.”
Ignoring the curious look Haewon’s giving her, she gestures to the alcove. “Can you get him out of there?”
Lily stares thoughtfully. “Have you got any tuna?”
“Yeah, I think so,” after a brief search, Jinsol extracts a tin of tuna from the cupboard above the sink. She and Haewon watch, involuntarily fascinated, as Lily opens the tin and places it carefully in front of the alcove.
For about a minute, nothing happens. Then the cat’s head comes peering out of the darkness. He sniffs delicately at the air, and Jinsol begins to creep forward. To her confusion, Lily’s hand reaches out to block her progress.
“Wait,” she whispers. “He’ll get suspicious if you move too fast.”
“I think I can outwit a cat,” Jinsol mutters, feeling a little affronted.
Lily just looks at her a little pityingly. “Everyone thinks that at first. It’s okay.”
She glances at Haewon, who has been watching the proceedings with a grin. She raises her eyebrows playfully at Jinsol’s frown.
By some unspoken agreement they all go quiet when more of the cat begins to appear. He drops down softly onto the kitchen tiles and pads over to the tuna, but before he reaches his goal Lily scoops him up efficiently and the cardboard box is procured without further ado.
-
“Oh my god,” Yoona’s face is partially obscured by her hands, so Jinsol’s reassuring smile is mostly lost on her. “I can’t figure out how he’s – I’m so sorry.”
“Luckily, I had a cat expert on call.” Jinsol says cryptically, leaning against the doorframe.
Lily and Haewon poke their heads into the doorway. Lily waves at the cat before it disappears behind the sofa.
Haewon waves a modest hand. “It’s all in the psychology. Cats are really –“
“The tuna got him out in the end,” Lily catches Yoona’s eye and they share a long-suffering grin.
“I’ll keep a real close eye on him, I swear,” Yoona says, still looking a little distressed. “Please don’t call the landlord –“
“It’s not a problem, really.” Jinsol tilts her head, smiling softly. “Your cat’s welcome any time in my apartment.”
“And so are you,” Haewon adds, winking at Yoona before catching Jinsol’s elbow in her ribs. “What? She is, right?”
“Uh,” Jinsol rubs the back of her neck. “Yeah, you are. Um. Come over – are you free Saturday?”
Yoona’s face is glowing. Lily takes this as a cue to leave.
“C’mon,” she nudges Haewon’s shoulder gently. “Let’s go try that new Italian place on the corner.”
“I kinda want tuna,” feeling bold, Haewon darts in to land a quick kiss on Lily’s cheek. “Nice job, by the way.”
Lily’s ears go pink. She ventures a glance round at Jinsol and Yoona, who are still hovering in the doorway. The cat is winding through Yoona’s legs, and as they watch he trots over to rub against Jinsol’s calf.
“That cat just knows.” Lily mumbles.
“It’ll still take them like a month to get it together, though, won’t it?”
“Two months, maybe.”